NAME SHAME?

Some people are upset over the use of the word "Redskins" by the Washington professional football team. Some think it racist and derogatory, some think it denigrates American Indians and conjures up the outworn and misguided image of them as savages. I disagree I think it is a tribute to them. First of all, it is a descriptively true word. It is not insulting anymore than New York Giants insults tall people. Here are some insulting names: the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago White Sox (stinkin' footwear), the San Antonio Spurs (something you kick horses with), the Minnesota Timberwolves and Chicago Blackhawks (killer animals), the Charlotte Hornets (stingin' wasps), and others. Many have come to realize that most Indians were good people who were wiling to live and trade with "the white man", that there were many intermarriages...and that if some today do not correctly understand the very interesting culture of the American Indian, it is due to the way America's history is erroneously taught in schools. Fans don't root against a team, they root for a team. Millions of fans root for the Redskins and if I were an American Indian I would see it as an inclusive name and a good thing. The way I would see the Juneau Jewboys.